Roundup: Gaza factions urge Egypt to reconsider branding Hamas armed wing terror group

Gaza-based factions on Saturday urged Egypt to reconsider an Egyptian court's decision that branded the armed wing of Islamic Hamas movement, the al-Qassam Brigades, a terrorist group.

Khader Habib, senior leader in the Islamic Jihad group in Gaza, told Xinhua that the decision of the Egyptian court "contradicts with the truth," adding "al-Qassam Brigades is a resistance group and doesn't intervene Egypt's internal affairs."

He said the move will serve the interests of neither Egyptians nor the Palestinians, and will only embolden the Israeli occupation.

An Egyptian court in Cairo decided earlier on Saturday that al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, "is outlawed and is a terrorist organization," according to the Egyptian Middle East News Agency (MENA). The decision said the group aimed at creating instability in the country.

The decision said that al-Qassam Brigades is involved in a series of terrorist attacks carried out in Egypt and also used the tunnels under the borders with the Gaza Strip to finance terrorist groups in Egypt.

"The decision of the Egyptian court is purely political," said Sami Abu Zuhri, Hamas spokesman, in an emailed press statement, urging the court to review it "immediately."

"Hamas, a liberation movement that only fights the Israeli occupation, completely rejects the court's decision and rejects pushing its name into the internal Egyptian affair," said Abu Zuhri.

On Thursday and earlier on Friday, around 45 Egyptian soldiers and civilians were killed in the Egyptian Peninsula of Sinai in a series of bombing attacks by militants, who said on Twitter they belong to the Islamic State.

Several Egyptian media accused Hamas armed wing of being involved in the attack and in previous attacks carried out by militants against the Egyptian army in Sinai.

Al-Qassam Brigades had repeatedly denied the Egyptian media claims.

Ties between Hamas and Egypt deteriorated since the ouster of former Islamic President of Egypt Mohamed Morsi in July 2013. Hamas is an extension to the worldwide Muslim Brotherhood Movement, Morsi's power base.

Meanwhile, Kayed al-Ghoul, the Gaza leader of the Popular Front from the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), told Xinhua that the decision of the Egyptian court "is merely political and it has to be treated through dialogue and not through courts."

He urged Egypt to differentiate between those individuals who made mistakes, and the official strategy of the group.

Saleh Zeidayn, Gaza leader of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP), also told Xinhua that the only way to overcome the crisis "is to treat the issue throughout fruitful dialogue and fix the damaged ties between Egypt and the Gaza Strip."

However, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah Party spokesman Ahmed Assaf held Hamas movement responsible for the court's decision.

He said that Fatah movement has always warned Hamas of protecting the ties with Egypt and never expected that the ties would reach such a deteriorated stage.

The spokesperson added that Hamas never listened to their advices of staying away from Egypt's internal affairs.

The decision of the Egyptian court would increase the pressure on the Gaza Strip and keep Rafah borders crossing point with Egypt closed.

Such a situation would make the life of the impoverished enclave even harder, who has been suffering from eight years of Israeli blockade. Endit